NY Police Arrest Man who Tried to Build a Bomb

New York City police arrest an Al-Qaeda sympathizer who tried to build a bomb and use it against soldiers and post offices.

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Elad Benari, 21/11/11 04:16

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Israel news photo: Flash 90

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Sunday that an Al-Qaeda sympathizer who plotted to bomb police and post offices in New York City has been arrested.

The Associated Press reported that 27-year-old Jose Pimentel of Manhattan, a U.S. citizen originally from the Dominican Republic, was arrested on Saturday.

In a special news conference he held, Bloomberg told reports that Pimentel “appears to be a total lone wolf. There is no evidence that he worked with anyone else.”

Pimentel is accused of having an explosive substance that he planned to use against others and property to terrorize the public, Bloomberg said.

Reuters reported that Pimentel planned to build a pipe bomb with instructions from the Al-Qaeda magazine “Inspire”, which he planned to use against U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said in the news conference that beyond soldiers, his intended targets were allegedly police officers and post offices.

According to AP, the charges include conspiracy, first-degree criminal possession of a weapon as a crime of terrorism, and soliciting support for a terrorist act.

“This is just another example of New York City because we are an iconic city ... this is a city that people would want to take away our freedoms gravitate to and focus on,” Bloomberg was quoted as having said.

The New York Police Department’s Intelligence Division was involved in the arrest, according to the report, and Kelly said Pimentel spend most of his years in Manhattan and lived about five years in Schenectady.